Ulster

I

Introduction

Ulster, province in the north of Ireland, bounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the north, the North Channel to the east, Leinster and Connaught to the south, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west. Historically it consists of nine counties: Cavan, Donegal, and Monaghan, which elected in 1921 to be part of the Republic of Ireland; and Antrim, Armagh, Down, Fermanagh, Londonderry, and Tyrone, which elected to remain part of the United Kingdom, as Northern Ireland.

II

Land and Resources

Ulster is mountainous and freer from bogs and plains than other parts of Ireland. The loftiest mountain is Errigal, at 752 m (2,467 ft), in Donegal. An area of basalt rocks known as the Giant’s Causeway is found on the north coast. The principal rivers flow from south to north into the Atlantic; others flow into loughs. The principal lough, and the largest lake in the British Isles, is Lough Neagh in the centre of the province.

Ulster has a generally mild climate. The average temperature in January is 5° C (41º F) and 15° C (59º F) in July. Rainfall depends on location and height and varies from 1,000 mm (39 in) to 2,000 mm (78 in) on the mountains.

III

Population

The area has been settled since prehistoric times. Most of the population in Northern Ireland are Protestants of Scots or English descent, those in the three Republican counties are 88 per cent Roman Catholic. The political division of Ulster and the resulting terrorism of the past three decades have exaggerated the economic differences that grew up between the three “Irish” counties of Ulster and the six “British” counties after partition. Northern Ireland counties have better roads, social services, and schools, and higher state welfare payments. Although Belfast-Dublin and Londonderry-Donegal are major trade routes, the closure for security reasons of many minor roads virtually ended cross-border commerce in border counties, affecting the three in the Republic particularly badly.

The largest communities in Ulster are Belfast (population, 2001 estimate, 277,200), which is also the capital of Northern Ireland, and Londonderry, also known as Derry (2002, 105,066). Other important towns are Letterkenny (2002, 7,965), Ballyshannon (1991, 2,838), Cavan (2002, 3,538), Monaghan (2002, 5,717), Coleraine (1991, 20,721), Enniskillen (1991, 11,436), and Newry (1991, 22,975), which was given city status in 2002.

IV

Economy

The troubled times of the past 30 years have had an effect on the economy. Investment dropped and tourists were reluctant to come. The 1994 ceasefire (see below) resulted in an increase in tourism and investment in the province. In 1997 unemployment fell by 19 per cent.

The service industries employ by far the most people. Agriculture, though employing few people these days, plays a significant part in the economy and especially in Cavan, Monaghan, and Donegal, which have generally poorer land than the Northern Irish counties. Industry has diversified and the region has received grants from the European Union to rebuild and develop its infrastructure. Traditional industry is mainly centred around Belfast but many of the yards which built ships such as the Titanic have now closed, replaced by high-tech and service industries. There is fierce competition between the nine counties for industrial investment from overseas.